| In 2025 the library adopted a cataloging system, based on the Library of Congress (LCC) cataloguing system. This system of library classification,
developed by the Library of Congress in the United States, can be best used for shelving books in certain libraries. LCC is mainly used by technical libraries, while most public libraries and
small academic libraries use the Dewey Decimal Classification system. The LCC
classification was developed by James Hanson (chief of the Catalog Department), with assistance from Charles Martel, in 1897, while they were working at the
Library of Congress. It was designed specifically for the purposes and collection of the Library of Congress. LCC has
been criticised for lacking a sound theoretical basis; many of the classification decisions were driven by the practical needs of that library rather than
epistemological considerations. Although it divides subjects into broad categories, it is essentially enumerative in nature. That is, it provides a guide
to the books actually in a library's collection, and by contrast, not a classification of the world's literature.
It was decided to adopt the LCC system, because it is more suited to a technical library. Many library users will be familiar with Dewey Decimal, if they are regular
borrower from municipal libraries, or acquainted with the State Library of Queensland, or Queensland Parliamentary Library. Dewey Decimal and Library of Congress have
certain similarities, so users will, no doubt, be quickly able to transpose from one system to another.
If you wish to review a full list of library holdings, or a part of this, ask your Shed librarian. The librarian has training material, and courses, relating to both paper
and on-line library resources, and is ready to train users in how to use the library. |
